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Topic: The Fountain v 2.0 Pickup |
Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 7:01 am |
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For those who don't like any right hand obstruction ... meet the FV2 Pickup ...
Basically it's a Coilsurround pickup but instead of strings running between the coils ... a modified* Halbach Array of Neodymium Iron Boron magnets is sandwiched between the two coils.
This shoots a uniform field high above the surface of the unit ... establishing a zone of parallel lines of force through which the strings run ... resulting in a response very similar to "string thru" pickups ...
Here's some measurements:
It's a Humbucker that can be switched to "A$$ Kicking" mode ... featuring very high output with lush tone, although it's not hum cancelling ...with a DPDT switch. Still very quiet due to being fully enclosed in a grounded aluminum case.
I was corresponding with a fellow well-versed in “Pickup Lore” …  ... and he said it sounds similar to a classic stacked humbucker's "power boost" option ... except that the overall magnetic circuit has plenty of "juice" to involve the lower coil in signal production.
This particular unit is for a six string Ricky SW6 that I have ... ran out of cast steels to retrofit
It is 1.5" wide x 1.375" tall x 3.5" long with a sensing length of 2.36" ... black wrinkled. Its mount is integrated into the lower unit.
*To be extremely technical ... a standard Halbach Array produces multipole segments along its length which is not useful in pickups. I figured out years ago how to augment the array to produce a usable dipole field. The CoilSurround uses multiple arrays which are similar to the FV2's array. ... Both are very difficult to make and this is reflected in the cost of these units. |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 7:16 am
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That's one scary looking pickup. It looks like it would suck the fillings out of your teeth! 
Nice job as always, Rick. Let's hear it!
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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HowardR
From:
N.Y.C.-Fire Island-Asheville
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 7:25 am Re: The Fountain v 2.0 Pickup
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| Rick Aiello wrote: |
ran out of cast steels to retrofit
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I know where there's one......  |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 8:02 am
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Those are some wicked gauss numbers. Can't wait to hear it--when are you sending one up?
_________________
Links to streaming music, websites, YouTube: Links |
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Peter den Hartogh
From:
Cape Town, South Africa
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 10:18 am
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| Is it legal to put these in the mail? |
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Rick Collins
From:
Claremont , CA USA
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 12:07 pm
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You're kidding us aren't you, Rick?
That's a rough grit 3M sanding block __ isn't it?  |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 2:16 pm
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Yeah ... It's a tad on the wrinkly side of wrinkle ... 
But since it's for my own little wooden guitar, no biggie ... 
Just gotta "clean" the SW6 up alittle before I post a few pictures ...
Mike & Howard ... Maybe I'll take a little road trip and bring the Boob, Bronzepan and this little rascal up to NYC for a visit. I missed my annual getaway to Joliet ... And I'm getting a tad squirrely around here  |
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J. Wilson
From:
Manitoba, Canada
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 2:25 pm
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Looks rad!
For sale to the public?
_________________
If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On. -Shakespeare
___________________________________________
1941 Ric B6 / 1948 National Dynamic / 1951 Bronson Supro / Custom teak wood Allen Melbert / Tut Taylor Dobro / Gold Tone Dojo / Martin D15S / Eastman P10 |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 2:29 pm
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| Yep ... Visit my website for info ... |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 26 Mar 2012 6:06 pm
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Looks like me and the "Magnet Show" are headin' north ... To meet up with Mike and Howard ... Sometime in April.
Think the "Big Apple" has enough beer and pizza ... |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 27 Mar 2012 6:43 pm
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Folks always ask about the affect of such a strong field on string vibrations ... You know ... the whole "Stratitis" thing ..
I put this old paradigm to rest ... A few years ago with the original Fountain Pickup
I built a little apparatus using a 3" length of 0.015 plain string ... under NO TENSION ..
It was positioned directly above the "sensor" ... with one end fixed ...
At about 1/8" above the unit (at about 1000 gauss) ... there was no deflection of the string at all ...
At about 3/32" ... the string started to bend abit ... like an old-time "divining rod"
At 1/16" ... the string was drawn down to the sensor ...
In steel guitars ... A 0.015 plain string ... brought up to a high E on a 22.5" scale ... has a tension of about 13 kg ( 28.7 lbs) ... therefore the downward force needed to alter this string's vibrational patterns would have to be far greater than those found in this or any similar unit.
I've got alot of units "out there" in use ... that are even stronger than these "Fountains" ... where the strings sit in a field ... in the neighborhood of 1500 gauss ...
As they say ... The proof is in the puddin' ... |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 27 Mar 2012 7:14 pm
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| And you know everybody loves a good puddin'! |
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Mike Anderson
From:
British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 27 Mar 2012 8:56 pm
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| Holy moly Rick - the "MRI" moniker is getting scarily close to reality! |
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David Matzenik
From:
Cairns, on the Coral Sea
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Posted 27 Mar 2012 11:16 pm
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A combination of magnetic forces like a fountain! I've been wondering what was in that box ever since Indiana Jones went looking for it.
_________________
Don't go in the water after lunch. You'll get a cramp and drown. - Mother. |
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J. Wilson
From:
Manitoba, Canada
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 8:12 am
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For those of us who are scientifically challenged... does a stronger magnet mean a better pup? ie: louder or better sounding?
_________________
If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On. -Shakespeare
___________________________________________
1941 Ric B6 / 1948 National Dynamic / 1951 Bronson Supro / Custom teak wood Allen Melbert / Tut Taylor Dobro / Gold Tone Dojo / Martin D15S / Eastman P10 |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 8:41 am
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| The PU on my Magnatone Troubadour outmuscles the universally recognized pre-Aiello heavyweight favorite, the Rickenbacher horseshoe, but seems to mean little, as weak pickups can produce beautifully useful sounds as well. However, articulation may be an aspect that figures high in the discussion, and maybe Rick has developed pickups that address this or even broader facets. We should all have free samples to taste test... |
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Paul Arntson
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 10:40 am
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Congrats Rick!!
Ever since I read about the Halbach array a few years ago I've thought it was a solution in search of a guitar pickup application.
Looking forward to more exposure and sound clips.
Do you care to disclose the inductance of the pickup coil you are using? |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 12:38 pm
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Many things work together in producing a pickups characteristic " sound" ... Magnet strength ( or lack of) is just one of them. Magnet wire size, # of turns, shape of the coil, geometry of the field, etc, etc.
I'm only interested in steel guitars ... So that's what I shoot for ... Clear, crisp, powerful and lush.
I will say that I have yet to have anyone who I remagnetized their old, tired magnets ... Whether they be Ricky's, Fenders, Supros, etc .... Prefer the sound of their steel before maggin' their units 
So within a given system ... The stronger the field ... The greater the output, the bigger the bass response, the higher the fidelity, etc, etc.
The main feature of this particular pickup is that it's field " looks" very similar to that of a " string thru" unit ... at string level ...
A strong dipole field with parallel lines of force.
IE ... The "bending back" of the lines to the opposite poles ... Takes place high above the string level ... Somewhat mimicing the return of the lines of force via horseshoes, steel yokes of Fender Traps and Supro/Nationals, etc.
I prefer the CoilSurround myself ... But this is close .... This "sound" is etched into my mind ... And my other steels just sound dull to me now.
Paul, I don't have a LCR meter so I don't know the inductance value. Since the coils have very little ferromagnetic material associated with the cores ... I imagine the inductance is very low.
The DC resistance of this particular unit is 1.8 k Ohm per coil ... 38 AWG
I am quite pleased with these two new pickups ... |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 12:44 pm
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| Rick, have you had the luxury of varying PU placement on any of your guinea pig steels to find the sweetest spot from the bridge, and possible 2nd bests? |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 1:17 pm
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Most everything I have is about 1.25" to 1.5 " from the bridge to the center of the unit, except my Sierra which is about 2" ... And it has housed all of them at one time or another ... its my control ...
Folks have commented on the right hand obstruction ... With horseshoes, etc on the Sierra.
I remember (quite fondly) when I made and installed my Potbelly pickup in Dave Giegerich's Sierra ... He played a while ... then went to do something with his right hand and said with his characteristic wit ... "Well I guess that's not going to be possible anymore" ...
I'm proud to say ... From that day on ... Dave used that steel as his main electric |
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J. Wilson
From:
Manitoba, Canada
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 1:36 pm
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Thanks Rick, for the pedestrian breakdown. That makes more sense to me. Pickup design, for me, has long seemed like a bit of a dark art! lol!
Sure am glad wizards like you and Jason are around to obsess over these things that many of us tend to take for granted.
_________________
If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On. -Shakespeare
___________________________________________
1941 Ric B6 / 1948 National Dynamic / 1951 Bronson Supro / Custom teak wood Allen Melbert / Tut Taylor Dobro / Gold Tone Dojo / Martin D15S / Eastman P10 |
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Former Member
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Posted 28 Mar 2012 6:53 pm
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I got my JB frypan back from Rick 3 weeks ago, with its new coilsurround.
It sounds very full and clear...AND does not make a hiss or buzz or NOTHING! To have super clean hear-your-smile-crack clarity, with no associated single coil noises is pretty remarkable!! --Someone should try it on a telecaster.
AND Rick changed the pots, caps, put in a push-pull switch, and made me a new nut!!! 
The thing sounds great!!
If I were you, I'd give it a try!! |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 30 Mar 2012 3:38 pm
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Ron, I'm glad you like it ...
I finished installing the new unit in my old SW6 ... I had to build a bridge for it ...
I decided to go with a volume and a On-On-On toggle switch ... to flip it from Humbucker to Split Coil (top coil only) to A$$ Kicking mode ...
Very subtle differences between the three ... overall very mellow ... much more so than I'm use to ...
Must be the wood ...
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J. Wilson
From:
Manitoba, Canada
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Posted 30 Mar 2012 8:23 pm
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Nice!! So this new unit takes up about the same space as your HShoes?
_________________
If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On. -Shakespeare
___________________________________________
1941 Ric B6 / 1948 National Dynamic / 1951 Bronson Supro / Custom teak wood Allen Melbert / Tut Taylor Dobro / Gold Tone Dojo / Martin D15S / Eastman P10 |
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Sam Weisenberg
From:
Philadelphia
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Posted 31 Mar 2012 9:20 am
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Hi Rick,
Will you let me know when you're coming up to NYC? I'd love to hear that pickup.
I've been loving the sound of your Potbelly in my old Epiphone, but I'm thinking about doing away with the obstruction. |
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